Call to protect offenders with grog, drug problems

Outgoing Chief Magistrate Hilary Hannam has already criticised the Country Liberals for scrapping the drug and alcohol Smart Court without consultation.

Dave Hunt, file photo: AAP

The Aboriginal Peak Organisations of the Northern Territory is urging the Government to consider reintroducing diversionary options for magistrates sentencing people with drug and alcohol problems.

Earlier this week, outgoing Chief Magistrate Hilary Hannam criticised the Country Liberals for scrapping the drug and alcohol Smart Court without consultation.

The group's Roslyn Cook, who is advocacy manager of the Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service, says the government has spent too much money on its mandatory alcohol rehabilitation program.

She says it has ignored the scale of alcohol and drug abuse among people already before the courts.

"We would like to see a range of programs that can help support people to address their drug and alcohol issues," she said.

"We'd like those services to be available to people after they are charged and we'd like magistrates to be able to access them, so they don't have to lock people up on remand so they can get treatment."

Ms Cook says the Government has dumped strategies that diverted offenders who had substance abuse problems in favour of detaining people who have not committed a crime.

"The Government's entire strategy has been focused on this new mandatory alcohol treatment, which isn't even available to people going through the courts," she said.

"If someone is an offender, they are not eligible for that rehabilitation program and it really just provides another pathway to prison for really vulnerable people."